Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1887-08-25
NEW VESSELS FOR THE NAVY.
Work on the Dynamite Gunboat and the BIG
Cruiser Baltimore.

Work on the Dynamite Gunboat and the Bic
Cruiser Baltimore.
The Philadelphia Ledger gives the fol
] lowing account of the progress of work
on new vessels for the navy now in course
of construction at Cramps shipyard,
Philadelphia:
The Secretary of the Navy has assigned
to Chief Engineer George w. Melville the
duty of inspecting the machinery of the
dynamite gunboat now under construc-
ton at the shipyard of William Cramp d
Sons, in addition to the duties previously
assigned to him at that place. These
vessels are now being constructed for the
Uuited States government by the Messrs.
| Cramp-the Baltimore, a large protective
| deck cruiser; gunboat No. 1, not yet
named, and the dynamite gunboat. The
frame work (all steeD of the Baltimore
and gunboat No. 1 is all erected, and con-
siderable of the steel-plating has been
put on. Work on the dynamite gunboat
has gone as far as the placing of the sup
| ports for the keel This boat is to be
completed twelve months from the date
of the contract, February IL, 1887, and
the Baltimore eighteen months from the
date of the contract, January 1 of this
year.
| 1t is said that if the dynamite gunboat
should be the success that is expected, g.
great change in the methods of naval
warfare will follow. trial of the vessel
is to be made in the Delaware river or
bay unue1 conditions prescribed by the
Secretary of the Navy. The speed of the
vessel must be not less than 20 knots per
hour. The armament is to comprise
three rheumatic dynamite guns, SIS feet
long. of 1917 inches caliber, and capable
of throwing shells containing 200 pounds
of dynamite or other high explosive at
a mile, and of being discharged at least
once in every two minutes. The project
! ing force is to be compressed air. The
shell is to have two sets of fuses, one for
| impact and the other for immersion.
| The impact fuses will have mechanism
to delay action for any desired time after
striking, and the immersion fuses are to
be capable of adjustment for either time
or depth of Immersion. The mechanism
for either impact or immersion will work
pin which will strike the illuminate.
| The dynamite shell will be an elongat-
ed conoid about eight inches in diameter,
and forty inches long. 1t is said that
experiments have shown that if the shells
were projected with powder the guns
would be blown to pieces. Momentum
is not an object in the projecting, as it
is the explosion and not the force with
which the shell strikes that does the
| damage. The range of the shell is not
regulated by changing the position of
the gun, but by increasing or decreasing
the air pressure. The gun is neither
elevated nor depressed. This is said to
be the first boat built to carry a dynamite
gun, and it is said to be largely expert
mental, although there is confidence that
it will be successful. 1t was stated III
Congress when the appropriation was
being considered that the experiment
was well worth trying, anyhow. The con-
tract price of the vessel exclusive of the
armament, is $35O,O00.
The Baltimore, it is said, will be larger
than any other iron cruiser now in the
navy. The contract price, without the
armament, is 1925, 900. It's length will
be 315 foet; breadth, 48 feet inches;
depth of hold from the top of the main
deck beams to the inner bottom, % feet
1138 inches; displacement, 1000 tons, and
collective house power of ouginoe, $500,
to be maintained successfully for four
consecutive hours. 1t is calculated that
with that horse power II knots per honr
would be made. The protective deck,
which is a main feature of both the Bal
timore and gunboat Ne. 1, is said to be a
new departure in manof-war shipbui1d-
ing for the United States. The protec
tive deck avoids, to considerable extent
the necessity of heavy iron plating. On
such a vessel the crew may be in more
Danger than on one with heavy iron plat
ing above the water line, but there is no
great probability that the vessel would
be forced out of action. One advantage
had in the building Of such a vessel is
that it will not be so large as those re-
quired to carry heavy plating, or as the
two battle-ships which are to be contract
ed for at an early date. These two ships
are to be of 5000 tons each, and will have
very heavy plating and heavior guns than
those which the Baltimore is to carry.
There will be no good work in the Bal
timore or the gunboat No. 1 except the
finishing and fittings in the saloon and
other apartments. The Baltimore will
have double bottom, in compartments,
SO that if torpedo or running aground
should break the outside bottom, it is
thought the filling of one of the com
partments with water would not disable
the vessel. Between the double bottom
NSOhA
begins there is a space of about eight
feet with only single plating, but all tina
will be at a considerable depth in the
water. The top of the protective deck
will be near the water line. The protec-
tive deck will be inside the part of the
vessel above water, and if that part
should be pierced by shot, the latter, it
is said, would glance off the inclined side
of the protective deck. The steel plating
of the protective deck will be two inches
thick. This deck will have fat top,
while the protective deck of the gunboat
No. L will be arched. All the frames and
platings of both vessels will be steel.
The Baltimore is to carry four eight
inch and six six-inch guns, a secondary
battery of fourteen machine guns, and
five torpedo guns. The eight-inch guns
are to be capable of throwing two-hun
dred and-ffty- pound shot, with one hun
dred pounds of powder, for distance of
eight or ten miles. The six-inch guns
are to throw hundred pound shot,
with fifty pounds of powder, distance of
about seven miles. There will be two